When I picture a prison, I see a cell with three walls and bars. I see the loss of freedoms to go where you want and when you want. I see a very structured life lived by the clock…time for breakfast, time to go into the yard, time for work responsibility. When the lights go out, you are alone. A life sentence for a crime one didn’t commit must be awful. There are continuous questions of why me. There are constant legal battles for retrials. And there is the acceptance that the life one dreamed about will be different. Living this prison life is sure to test the emotions of any sane person.

Having difficult to control epilepsy is very much like living prison life for a handful of reasons. Medications must be given at the same time every day. The freedom to complete activities is often restricted based on the risk of having a seizure. There are many legal battles being fought for those with epilepsy including inequality, discrimination, and the legalizing of cannibidiol as well as rescheduling cannabis so it can be more widely studied. People with epilepsy are innocent. They didn’t do anything that deserves epilepsy. And for many, it is a life-long struggle. But there is also hope.

The 4th of July is a time to celebrate America’s history and the freedom that we enjoy. That freedom has not come without a price. Millions have lost their lives defending the very concept of freedom. But with freedom comes great responsibility. And quite often, we fail in protecting our most basic beliefs that all men (people) are created equal. Our culture is full of examples where we have abused the very ideals that set us free.

What is common about freedom in almost every sense of the word is the spirit of hope that drives a person to want to be free. Robert F. Kennedy said, “Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope...build(ing) a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.” Entire movements begin by a simple act of kindness or an individual’s desire to help others. Regardless of how they start, people follow them because they are inspired to do something that matters.